Buffing wheel



United States Patent 3,099,545 BUFFING WHEEL Richard S. Johnson, 1032 S.42nd St., Birmingham 5, Ala. N0 Drawing. Filed Feb. 1, 1961, Ser. No.86,319 2 Claims. (Cl. 51298) This invention relates to bufling wheelsmade from textile fabrics, and more particularly to buffing wheels thathave been treated with a resinous composition.

The bufling wheel of the present invention is particularly characterizedin its excellence for buffing aluminum and aluminum alloys.

Some of the prior art bufiing wheels that have been dipped in variousresinous compositions are characterized in that the composition causesthe fabric of the buffing wheel to become brittle and to break off whenthe buffing wheel is repeatedly flexed during the buffing operation.This results in a short wheel life, and more importantly these brokenbits of coated fabric become part of an excessive head that developsduring the buffing operation. This head is a combination of elementsthat builds upon and coats the outer periphery of the buffing wheelduring the buffing operation; it is composed of metallic particles fromthe article being buffed, bits of frayed fabric from the buffing wheel,granules of abrasive dust supplied during the bufling operation andwaxes, tallows and oils from the vehicle carrying the abrasive dust.This excessive head build up, or accumulation of elements, which ischaracteristic of all prior art bufiing wheels, interferes with theapproach of the bufling wheel fabric and the abrasive to the metal beingbuffed, thus causing inefficiency in the buffing operation. A furtherdisadvantage is that the excessive head causes scratching, tearing andmarking off of the metal being buffed, especially in the case ofaluminum and aluminum alloys because of their relatively soft character,thus defeating the purpose of the buffing operation, which is theremoval of scratches and the production of a smooth surface upon themetal being buffed.

Another and further disadvantage of the dipped buffing wheels of theprior art is excessive fraying of the fabric forming the outer peripheryof the buffing wheel, which also causes excessive head build up andshort wheel life.

The problems listed above has been solved by the present invention whichcomprises treating the cotton buffing wheel with a resinous composition,particularly a modified alkyd resin, a mixture of a rosin derivative, aplasticizer and a suitable solvent. The buffing wheel is dipped into thecomposition, thus impregnating the fabric, coating the yarns and fibers,and cementing the adjacent yarns together. In this manner, the cementedyarns are bound together and become stronger, with greatly reduced fiberbreakage. Also, fraying of the fabric on the outer periphery of thebuffing wheel is markedly reduced. Since the head build up can onlybecome as thick as the depth of the frayed fabric as measured on theradius of the wheel, the depth of head is correspondingly minimized asthe frayed fabric area is reduced. This decrease of the head results inan increased area of con-tact between the metal being buffed, thebuffing Wheel fabric and the abrasive that is utilized in bufling, thusresulting in increased bufiin-g efficiency. The lessening of fiberbreakage causes fewer bits of broken fabric to be contributed to thehead composition, thus tfurther reducing the head build up. Since theabove head is made smaller, fewer metallic particles from the articlebeing buffed may accumulate on the head, resulting in less scratching,tearing and marking off of the metal being buffed.

Although prior resinous compositions have to some extent cementedtogether the adjacent yarns of buffing wheels, none has produced acotton buflin'g wheel as efficient as may be done by the presentinvention.

Although the foregoing discussion has been directed to cotton buffingwheels, it will be realized that the present invention is not limited tobuffing wheels made from cotton fabric, but also contemplates buffingwheels made from other textile fabrics and arrangements of fibers, bothnatural and synthetic.

The following are examples of the present invention:

Example I A resinous composition is made according to the followingformula, all parts by weight: Component: Percent by weightPentaerythrita-l ester of modified rosin (the prodnot obtained by thesubstantially complete esterification, with pentaerythrital, of therosin acids present in rosin that has been modified by the formation ofan adduct with maleic All of the operations are carried out at roomtemperature, and the composition need not be compounded in anyparticular order. The composition is stable over a long period of time.

A preformed conventional cotton fabric butting wheel is totally immersedinto a vat containing the above composition at room temperature forthirty seconds, and an amount of solution equal to about 25-30% of theweight of the fabric is taken up by the fabric. The buffing wheel isthen removed from the mixture and rotated for thirty seconds upon itsaxis on the same plane and at the same speed at which the wheel willlater be operated, for example LOUD-3,000 r.-p.m., depending on thediameter of the wheel. The remaining solvent is then evaporated in acurrent of air until the buffing wheel is substantially dry.

Example 11 A resinous composition is made according to the formuladisclosed in Example I, above.

A pre-formed conventional sisal fabric buffing wheel is totally immersedinto a vat containg the above composition at room temperature for thirtyseconds, and an amount of solution equal to about 25-30% of the weightof the fabric is taken up by the fabric. The buffing wheel is thenremoved from the mixture and rotated for thirty seconds upon its axis onthe same plane and at the same speed at which the wheel Will later beoperated, for example 1,0003,000 r.p.m., depending on the diameter ofthe Wheel. The remaining solvent is then evaporated in a current of airuntil the buffing wheel is substantially dry.

It is preferred that the buffing wheel be rotated in the above mentionedmanner so that the resinous composition will be evenly deposited overthe wheel and a dynamically balanced wheel be produced, although it isnot essential. Unbalanced buffin-g wheels will cause excessive wearingof the bearings and journals of buffing machinery.

Advantageous results have been obtained from the above describedpentaerythrital ester of modified rosin, but it is contemplated thatrosin modified phenolic resins, the pentaerythrital ester of rosin, themodified rosin sold under the trade name Pentacite 1405 by ReichholdChemicals, Inc., or the modified rosin sold under the trade namePentalyn 860 by Hercules Powder Company may be substituted therefor.Likewise, the above described styrenated alkyd resin is utilized as thepreferred modifier. However, the styrenated alkyd polymer of other oilmodified alkyd resins, such as those obtained from reacting castor oilwith glycerol and a mixture of phthalic and maleic anhydrides orphthalic anhydride and fumaric acid, or the resin sold under the tradename Styresol 4250 by Reichhold Chemicals, Inc., may be substitutedtherefor. Further, it is desirable that the oil used in modifying theresin be a non-drying oil rather than a drying oil, because of theinherent danger of spontaneous combustion in using chemical compoundsderived from drying oils in textile fabrics.

In addition, the resin should contain 20-60% by weight of reactedstyrene and should be chosen from the group of styrenated oil modifiedalkyd resins that, when cast into thin sheets or films, display superiorabrasion resistance and heat stability. Toluene is utilized as thepreferred solvent for the solid components in the present invention,because it has the advantage of relatively low toxicity, intermediateevaporation rate, and because of its aromatic character. However, it iscontemplated that a xylene-toluene mixture or benzene may be substitutedtherefor. Castor oil is utilized as the preferred plasticizer, but it iscontemplated that dioctyl phthalate, or tris(2,3 dichloropropyl)orthophosphate may be substituted therefor. This latter plasticizerimparts excellent flame retardant properties to the buffing wheel.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention and the preferred mannerof practicing the present method have been described, it will beunderstood that the invention may be embodied in other forms and appliedto other methods within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. As a new article of manufacture, a buffing wheel made of cottontextile fabric that has been treated with a composition comprising 15%of a member selected from the group consisting of pentaerythrital esterof modified rosin, rosin modified phenolic resin, pentaerythrital esterof rosin, and modified rosin, 15% of a member selected from the groupconsisting of styrenated alkyd resin and styrenated alkyd polymer of oilmodified alkyd resin, of a solvent selected from the group consisting oftoluene, benzene, and xylene-toluene mixture, and 10% of a plasticizerselected =r'ron1 the group consisting of castor oil, dioctyl phthalate,and tris (2,3 dichl'oropropyl) orthophosphate and thereafter dried.

2. As a new article of manufacture, a buffing Wheel made of sisaltextile fabric that has been treated with a composition comprising 15%of a member selected from the group consisting of pentaerythrital esterof modified rosin, rosin modified phenolic resin, pentaerythrital esterof rosin, and modified rosin, 15% of a member selected from the groupconsisting of styrenated alkyd resin and styrenated alkyd polymer of oilmodified alkyd resin, 60% of a solvent selected from the groupconsisting of toluene, benzene, and xylenetoluene mixture, and 10% of aplasticizer selected from the group consisting of castor oil, dioctylphthalate, and tris (2,3 dichloropropyl) orthophosphate and thereafterdried.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,060,665 Durant et al Nov. 10, 1936 2,851,379 Staudinger et a1 Sept. 9,1958 2,890,137 Vaughan et al. June 9, 1959 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICECERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3 o99 545 July 3o 1963 Richard S,Johnson It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numberedpatent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should readas corrected below.

In the grant, lines 1 to 3 for "Richard SQ Johnson of Birmingham Alabamaread Richard S. Johnson of Birmingham Alabama, assignor by mesneassignments to Jackson Buff Corporation, of Conover North Carolina acorporation of North Carolina line 12, for "Richard S. Johnson his heirsread Jackson Buff Corporation its successors in the heading to theprinted specification line 3 for "Richard S. Johnson, 1032 5. 42nd St.,Birmingham 5 Ala," read Richard S. Johnson, Birmingham, Ala. assignor bymesne assignments to Jackson Buff Corporation Conover, NO C. q acorporation of North Carolina column 1, line 43, for "has read U havecolumn 2 line 22, for "anhydride" read anhydrides line 419 for"containg" read containing Signed and sealed this 12th day of May 1964.

(SEAL) Attest:

ERNEST W, SWIDER EDWARD Jn BRENNER Attesting Officer Commissioner ofPatents

